Saudi Arabia: Tadawul to open to foreigners

The Saudi cabinet approved the opening of the stock market to foreign financial institutions on 21 July, at a session headed in Jeddah by Crown Prince Salman Bin Abdelaziz. The move is expected; as GSN reported in its last issue, the idea of opening the Tadawul to foreigners has been mooted for years, and has been edging closer, though the cabinet’s approval came surprisingly fast.There is still some way to go. A statement from the Capital Market Authority on 22 July said it was hoping to allow foreign financial institutions to invest in “eligible” stocks during the first half of 2015